When you first hear about the "extreme" weather in Rexburg, it’s really hard to know what to think. Do students have to wear snowsuits just to walk a couple of feet to class in the winter? And keep cold drinks and little handheld fans within arm's reach at all times in the summer? Although sometimes the weather seems overly intense, the perspective of "extreme" really depends on where you’re from. The winters do get cold, and the snow really does pile up. But Rexburg has a decent system for clearing the icy roads and walkways. On snowy mornings, snowplows rid the roads of snow, and around campus, salt is laid to reduce falls caused by the icy ground. You do have to bundle up, but this doesn't mean snow boots and ski masks. Really, a good coat and gloves will do the trick most often. The fall semester is generally beautiful with mild weather. And the spring semester is cold for the first couple of weeks, but once the warm weather sets in, there are sunny skies and warm weather days through mid September (with your occasional random snow shower or rainstorm).
It is a shock to transition to Rexburg weather if you're used to warmer, milder places. But along with the different weather extremes comes different experiences. For example, snowboarding, skiing, sledding, and snowmobiling are fun favorites during the winter. And for the warmer months, there are plenty of places for swimming, sunbathing, and outdoor sports like hiking, rock climbing, river rafting, and biking. Also, another thing worth mentioning, people will talk a lot about how terrible the winters can get, but for the most part, one thing you don't really have to deal with is it being constantly dark. Oddly enough, almost every day there's a point where the sun is up and shining. So, yes it can get pretty cold, but at least it doesn't look depressing.